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These outbreaks have
shown up the vulnerability of e-mail systems. Even the best security
procedures can fail through computer users opening their unsolicited
messages and letting loose the virus.
The DERA software,
unveiled last week in London, claims to provide the answer. Based on
research to protect highly sensitive government documents and computer
systems from attack, the package turns conventional anti-virus thinking
on its head: instead of attempting to stop the virus getting in, it
prevents it from getting out and damaging other machines.
The principle behind
the software, named ::Mail, appears simple - whenever users try to send
an e-mail, ::Mail shows a box on the screen telling them what they are
sending to whom, and asking them to confirm the command. If the user
unwittingly opens an infected e-mail that then tries to replicate
itself, the box will appear, warning them that the computer is trying to
send e-mails. Although their own computer will be infected, with a click
of the mouse, they will be able to prevent the virus escaping.
The new software is
heavily protected from attack, removing the possibility of virus writers
producing a code able to override the security.
Simon Wiseman, who led the team that
developed the software, said: "Because most of the work we do is
for the MoD we are experienced at preventing confidential information
from getting out when it shouldn’t. This is an extension of that basic
principle. While every other anti-virus company has concentrated on
stopping things getting in, we are shutting down the propagation
channels so that any damage is contained in the machines of those
opening the infected message."
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